murther

mur·ther

murther

mur•der

(ˈmɜr dər)

n., v. -dered, -der•ing.n.

1. the unlawful killing of a person, esp. when done with deliberation or premeditation or occurring during the commission of another serious crime (first-degree murder) or with intent but without deliberation or premeditation (second-degree murder).

2. something injurious, immoral, or otherwise censurable: to get away with murder.

3. something extremely difficult or unpleasant: That exam was murder!

v.t.

4. to kill by an act constituting murder.

5. to kill or slaughter barbarously.

6. to spoil or mar through incompetence: The singer murdered the aria.

7. Informal. to defeat thoroughly.

v.i.

8. to commit murder.

[1300–50; Middle English mo(u)rdre, murder, variant (influenced by Old French murdre < Germanic) of murthremurther]

46) The authors (probably Greene and a collaborator) leave little doubt about the drama's selling-point: if the play is well received, they promise in the epilogue that 'The second part shall greater murthers tell' (7).

I cannot say, but that some such Murthers were committed, and I think two were sent to Prison for it, but died before they could be try'd; and I have heard that three others, at several Times, were excused for Murthers of that kind; but I must say I believe nothing of its being so common a Crime, as some have since been pleas'd to say, nor did it seem to be so rational, where the People were brought so low as not to be able to help themselves, for such seldom recovered, and there was no Temptation to commit a Murder, at least, none equal to the Fact where they were sure Persons would die in so short a Time; and could not live.

Which godly Martyrs as they could not abide beyng aliue, so neither can they now suffer their memories to lyue after their death, least the acts of them beyng knowne, might bring perhaps their wicked acts and cruell murthers to detestation: and therfore spurne they so vehemently against this booke of histories, with all kind of contumelies and vprores, railing and wondering vpon it.

In A Godly Form of Houshold Government, one of the most popular early modern conduct books, John Dod and Robert Cleaver argued that the horror of realizing one is permanently and intimately tied to someone hateful leads to "so great ruines, so wicked and vile deeds, as maymes, and murthers, committed by such desperate persons, as are 10th to keepe, and yet cannot lawfully refuse, nor leave them.

But in his speech opening the 1604 Parliament, James seemed even more concerned with the dangers posed by Catholics: twice noting the "encrease [of] their number and strength in this Kingdome" and linking this to the imperial ambitions of the Pope, James ventured that the "continuall practise" of the most radical Catholics "is the assasinates and murthers of Kings, thinking it no sinne, but rather a matter of salvation, to doe all actions of rebellion and hostilitie against their naturall Soveraigne Lord" (A Speach, As It Was Delivered .

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